These are various thoughts that have resonated with me over time. While many are credited to others, I’ve paraphrased some unintentionally, and a few are my own. My goal isn’t originality, but rather to record insights that have been meaningful to me. If you recognize something that should be credited, please let me know.

Things

Keep things simple. Speak simply. Act simply. Over and over, simplicity is tied to happiness.

Own less stuff. Downsize and get rid of stuff when you can. Only occasionally have I missed something that I got rid of but the burden of clutter wears on me every day. Establish clear rules about when to throw out old junk. Once clear rules are established, junk will probably cease to be a problem. This is because any rule would be superior to our implicit rules (“keep this broken stereo for five years in case I learn how to fix it”). 

Spend money responsibly. Save some for big projects and emergencies. Save some for retirement. When you do buy something, buy the good one… not the needlessly luxurious but not the crappy, barely satisfies the need one either. Get the one that is a pleasure to use and have. Avoid debt for all things except a house, a car, or education.

  1. It’s 100% off if you don’t buy it.
  2. Not wanting something is as good as having it.
  3. Be happy with what you have, while you work for what you want.
  4. Minimalism isn’t about owning nothing, it’s about nothing owning you.
  5. Stop trading time for money, start trading value for money.
  6. The real value of money is what you can afford to no longer do.
  7. Peace is the absence of desire.
  8. The less you have to work with, the more you’ll do with what you have.

People

Be kind and use good manners. Always. Kindness and manners are not based on the worth of the recipient but are an expression of your character and inner world.

Be honest or at least don’t lie. Be honest with yourself and everyone but always filtered through kindness.

Don’t try to control people and don’t connect your happiness with the actions of others. Also, don’t take things from others too personally. Everyone is lost in their own worlds most of the time.

Like people. Love people. Let them know it in your way and a way they understand. Compliment honestly and easily but never falsely.

Let people feel things. Give them space. Remember that those feelings are theirs and not yours to manage. Offer comfort when needed. Celebrate with them. But those are their feelings. Likewise, their criticism, even when aimed at you, is their burden. If you can learn from it, do that, but don’t take on their negativity as your own.

When someone does criticize you, listen, but don’t own it. Sort it. Size it up. If you can learn something from it, take that part. However, don’t give it too much space. Don’t let their opinion have more power than your own.

Spend your energy on people who want good things for you. Don’t spend energy on people who don’t really want you around. If you find someone who wants good things for you and wants your company, you found gold.

Don’t accept cruelty or unkindness from anyone. Not one person. If you love them and they are unkind, address the hurt with love. Ask them for help. If you cannot reach terms, it may be best to love them from a distance.

  1. Be interesting to others by being interested in them.
  2. Every single person you meet knows something you don’t.
  3. Speak when you have something to say, not when you want to say something.
  4. Admit when you’re wrong, show humility when you’re right.
  5. Ignore the noise, people will criticize you no matter what you do.
  6. Integrity is being the same person no matter the circumstance.

Myself

Be grateful. This one above everything. Being grateful involves giving attention to and positivity toward the good things in your life. The more you practice gratitude, the easier it becomes. It is like magic.

Let go of people’s opinions of you. You don’t live by committee. Be yourself and learn to love yourself. You don’t need permission to be you. Just be you.

Get out of the comparison game. Be a better version of you than yesterday and stop trying to be a second rate version of someone else.

Play to your strengths. Be honest about your weaknesses. Don’t let your strengths go to your head. Don’t let your weaknesses go to your heart.

Reduce and eliminate worry. Let things go, for your own sake. Most things don’t end up as bad as you fear they will. Love is greater than justice. Forgive. Holding grudges is like a type of worry that depends on others.

Slow down. Appreciate right now. This moment never comes back.

Take care of your body. Get some exercise. Brush your teeth. Wear sunblock. Don’t eat too much junk. Sit up straight. Feeling good about yourself and feeling healthy is better than any other short term reward.

Engage your joys. Buy that jacket or book. (If it does not endanger your budget) Make time to draw or play. Eat good food especially if it is healthy.

  1. No one owes you anything.
  2. See previous.

The 5 Essentials

by Matt Cram

  1. Engage virtues (wisdom, kindness, justice, creativity, etc.)
  2. Be grateful (for everything)
  3. Savor (slow down; be in the now)
  4. Get lost in the process (flow)
  5. Find meaning (serving others mostly)

Happiness really comes from two things: gratitude and perspective.

Ethics rather than rules.

You are always choosing your struggle. This doesn’t mean it’s your fault but it is your responsibility. Each component of life has an element of choice.

5 tenets

  1. Accept imperfection and impermanence. No one is “normal.” Everyone is a bit broken. Nothing lasts forever. Safety, security, and admiration does not come from a place of perfection but from the acceptance of change.
  2. Kindness. Let knowing that everyone is broken reveal your compassion. Learning how to share your own vulnerabilities is the bedrock of true friendship.
  3. Know yourself. We are not entirely sane and we are all a bit foolish. Messing up is to be expected. Accepting your own limitations and being ready to welcome our similarly broken neighbors is a crucial step toward emotional maturity.
  4. Beyond romanticism. Love is not only admiration of strength but patience and compassion for mutual fragility and weakness. Compatibility isn’t a prerequisite for love; it is the achievement of love.
  5. Transcend yourself. Thankfully, we are not the center of anything. Cosmic humility is a liberation.

You, yourself, are the eternal energy which appears as this Universe. You didn’t come into this world; you came out of it. Like a wave from the ocean. You are the universe experiencing itself. — Alan Watts

I hate that I have to slay this dragon, but I’m excited to carry its head. — Alex Cram

5 difficult truths by Mark Manson

  1. Humans suck. Try to suck less.
  2. Pain is inevitable; suffering is optional.
  3. Everything you believe will one day fail you. This is how you grow.
  4. You don’t deserve happiness. You don’t deserve suffering. You don’t deserve anything.
  5. Everything you love will one day be lost. This is what makes life meaningful.

How to talk to people of higher status

  1. Ask questions beyond the obvious ones. Read up on the person/company
  2. Use the Question Preamble. Don’t fall into the trap of fawning the entire interaction
  3. Steer conversations towards emotion. Use the “best and worst/highlight and lowlight” structure to steer conversation towards emotion
  4. Tease playfully. Take the risk and have some fun. Don’t answer every question in a serious manner
  5. Comfortably express disagreement
  6. You need to see the human beneath. We are all human! You are not so different.

A happy life consists not in the absence, but in the mastery of hardships. — Helen Keller

Life is hard. It’s even harder if you are stupid. — John Wayne

Perhaps the secret of living well is not in having all the answers but in pursuing unanswerable questions in good company. — Rachel Naomi Remen

Eat your vegetables, exercise regularly, get adequate sleep, use sunscreen, moisturize, hydrate, limit alcohol, refrain from smoking/inhalants/drugs, be kind, use your manners, read often, remember that you are lovable.

Here are the main themes #HalliSolvesEverything:

  1. Be happy with what you have rather than unhappy with what you don’t.
  2. Life is hard. Accept it.
  3. You can’t get everything you want. Deal with it.
  4. You know the solution, you just don’t want to do the thing.

Easy.

Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb, we are bound to others, past and present. And by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future. — Sonmi-451, Cloud Atlas

Things that make me happy

The Nine Choices

  1. Intention: Consciously choose happiness over unhappiness
  2. Accountability: Choose to accept full responsibility for their thoughts, actions, and feelings
  3. Identification: Choose to look deeply inside of themselves to determine what makes them uniquely happy vs. looking to others to learn what should make them happy
  4. Centrality: Choose to keep what makes them happy central in their lives
  5. Recasting: Choose to convert problems into opportunities and find meaning in even the most painful times
  6. Options: Choose to be open to new opportunities and remain flexible and ready to adapt when the unexpected occurs
  7. Appreciation: Choose to possess a deep and ongoing appreciation for all that is good in their lives and to stay present focussed
  8. Giving: Choose to give of themselves generously and without expectation of being rewarded
  9. Truthfulness: Choose to be honest with themselves and others